Paper carton with handle



1960 E. w. ELLISON PAPER CARTON WITH HANDLE INVENTOR.

Filed Dec. 8, 1958 FIG.2.

United States Patent PAPER CARTON WITH HANDLE Erick William Ellison, Kirkwood, Mo. (7708 Fontana, Prairie Village, Kans.)

Filed Dec. 8, 1958, Ser. No. 778,910)

Claims. (Cl. 229-52) The invention relates to cartons of paper cardboard or the like such as are commonly used for packaging ice cream and other merchandise and consist of a flat blank with bottom, side and top portions foldable relative to each other to complete the carton.

One form of such cartons includes extensions on top flaps of the carton extending normally thereto and forming handles by which the carton may be conveniently carried. The present invention relates particularly to such a carton in which the handle-forming portions are juxtaposed and the additional flaps are provided with tabs for engaging each other and at least some of which engage the handle to hold the carton closed. Such cartons as previously used are likely to have the closing flaps separate from each other when the handles are subjected to the weight of the loaded carton thus forming an unsightly and unsecure gap between the carton flaps and possibly exposing or permitting escape of the contents.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating a selected embodiment of the invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective of a set-up carton embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a top view of an open carton with the top flaps extending outwardly from the merchandisecontaining body of the carton.

Figure 3 is a the top view of the carton just prior to its completely closed position shown in Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a side view of the upper portion of the carton as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a top view of the carton completely closed but with the handles flat against the top flaps of the carton.

The carton includes overlapping bottom forming flaps 11, front and rear walls 12, 13 and side walls 14, 15. Flaps 16, 17, 18, 19 project from the upper ends of walls 12, 13, 14 and 15 respectively and are folded over in the usual manner to form the top wall of the carton. Flaps 16 and 17 are as wide as walls 14, 15 and overlap each other between front and rear walls 12, 13. Each of flaps 18, 19 includes a body portion extending from the corresponding side wall 14, 15 about half of the maximum width of flaps 16, 17 and flap 18 terminates in an extension of U shape having legs 21, 22 and a cross bar 23 at the outer ends of the legs. Flap 19 has a similar extension with legs 24, 25 and a cross bar 26 at their outer ends. The extensions are bendable about fold lines 28, 29 to the positions shown in Figure 1 in which they are normal to the flat body portions and form handles for the closed carton.

The above description is of conventional carton structure. The present carton includes novel securing means for holding the top flaps 18, 19 interengaged. For this purpose fiap 18 has a part P cut away leaving a major tab 30 and a smaller tab 32 projecting from the body of the flap transversely of a straight line between the inner ends of legs 21, 22. The adjacent portions of tabs 30, 32 are defined by a common short curved slit 33 ex- 2,961,145 Patented Nov. 22, 1960 tending inwardly from the outer end of the tab. The opposite sides of tabs 30, 32 bulge transversely of the flap at 35, 37 respectively. The projecting portion 40 of flap 19 has a closed end slit 41, in addition to the handleforming slit 42, extending between but spaced from legs 24, 25. One end of the slit is reentrant and forms a short lateral tab 43.

When the canton is to be closed, flaps 16 and 17 are first folded over the open top of the carton and then flaps 18, 19 are brought to the position shown in Figure 4 with their handles folded back over the top faces of the flaps. Tab 30 is then lapped over the outer portion 40 of flap 19 and inserted into the portion 41a of slit 41 and beneath the inner part of flap 19. Simultaneously tab 32 is passed beneath tab 43 and upwardly through port-ion 41b of slit 41, and over the top of flap 19. The bulge 37 of tab 32 moves past the opposing inner edge of the handle leg 24 at its fold and when the handle is upright projects outwardly beyond said edge to resist withdrawal of the tab. Similarly the edge of bulge 35 on tab 39 engages the portion 41a of slit 41 to prevent withdrawal movement of the tabs.

The carton material is flexible enough to accommodate shifting, under pressure at points spaced from the tabs, of the edges of the tabs transversely of the line X so that the tabs may move to the assembled positions described, but the carton material is stiff enough, under tension applied through the handle legs when the carton is lifted by the handles, to resist similar distortion of the tab edges which would be necessary to unlatch or free the flaps from each other.

'Ilhe desired result is due largely to the direct engagement of bulge 37 with the inner edge of handle leg 24 and the folding of the flaps against shifting transversely of line X by the interengagement of the outer edge of bulge 35 of tab 39 with the end portion 41a of slit 41 in flap 19. The structure is particularly advantageous when the cartons are filled and closed with their handles interlocked in a packaging machine, as is used for merchandising ice cream. In such machines it has been diflicult to readily etfeet adequate closure of the top flaps when provided with handles, and the provision of a carton for efiectively carrying out such operation is an additional object of the invention.

Accordingly the objectives stated in the introductory portion of the specification are attained.

The details of the contours of the tabs and slits and handle edges, and their relations to each other, may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention and the exclusive use of such modifications as come Within the scope of the claims is contemplated.

I claim:

1. A foldable carton of paper or the like with overlapping flaps forming the top wall of the set-up carton, at least one of which flaps includes a handle extension of U shape with spaced legs bendable about fold lines on the flap, at the ends of the U legs remote from the U cross bar, to an upright position normal to the face of the remainder of the flap, there being a slit with closed ends in one flap extending a major portion of the distance between the legs of the handle-forming extension of that flap but the ends of the flap slit being spaced from he flap handle legs, there being a tab on the other flap readily inserted in said slit and having a lateral projection at one end engageable with the edge of an upstanding leg of the first flap to hold the flaps interlocked.

2. A foldable paper carton according to claim 1 in which each of the overlapping flaps includes an individual handle-like extension, said handle-like extensions being contiguous to each other when upright to provide a double thickness handle extending from the flaps.

3. A foldable carton of paper or like material having overlapping top closure flaps, each flap. including a U- shaped extension with fold lines transversely of the U legs at the ends thereof remote from the U cross bar aboilt which the extension may be bent to form upstandi ng jilxtaposed handles, characterized by the presence of a. closed end slit in one flap extending between but terminating short of the legs of the handle extension on that fiapQahd a tab projecting from the other flap transversely of and beyond said slit and bulging outwardly beyond the end of the slit and having a lateral recess spaced from' its outer end receiving the. corresponding upstanding handleleg on the first flap and holding the juxtaposed handle. legs together. i 4. A carton according to claim 3 in which the. flaps have a. second pair of tabs adjacent to the. other legs of the handle extensions each overlapping the other flap, and said latter-mentioned tabs interengaging. each other edgewise to hold the overlapped. flaps together, and. all of leg.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 781,192 Dingwall Jan. 31, 1905 1,810,743 Allen June 16, 1931 1,845,471 Ze'nick Feb. 16,1932

FOREIGN PATENTS 973,076 France Sept. 6, 1950' the tabs holding the two flaps against shifting along the handle fold lines.

5. A carton according 101613511). 3 in which each flap has a tab with a convex arcuate edge facing away from the handle extension and toward the middle of the flap, the arcuate edges of said tabs being disposed to interengage and interlock the flaps irrespective of the firstmentioned engagement of a tab and the upstanding handle 

